Michael
Site Admin
Joined: 26 Mar 2007
Posts: 213
Location: Baltimore MD, USA
Add Karma
You have been rated by 1 people
Add Comment
Show Comments
|
 Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2007 2:45 am Post subject: Daddy's Girl Part 2 |
 |
|
This is the second half of the chapter called "Daddy's Girl" from my novel Estranged Earth (originally Pure Intensity), continued from my blog here. I divided it because the post seemed way to big and it was annoying me.
Tear it up, please. I know it needs work! Any insight you can offer would be much appreciated.
2
(-Do you see what I mean? Are you ready now?-
-Okay, I'll do it, but only the basics. That's all I can handle right now.-
-That's fine, but she'll learn it easier from you, as I said before.-
-I understand, but I'm not promising anything. She's pretty messed up, you know, being so young and dealing with him at the same time.-
-Yes, but he wasn't so powerful then as he is now, was he? She'll be fine if you help her.-
-Of course, I know that, or we wouldn't be here now. Okay, Teach, I'm going. You don't have to convince me anymore.-
-I thought so.-)
~*~
Linda hugged her knees close to her chest while she sat rocking back and forth on her bed. Her family had been gone for close to an hour when the telephone started to ring. She was reluctant to answer, and had let it ring for several minutes before acknowledging it.
When it persisted she grew irritated. Who would let the phone ring like that? she thought. With a sigh, she climbed out of bed and went in search of the intrusion.
The telephone chimed for what must have been the fifteenth time before she reached it. She answered the cordless model on the end table beside the recliner.
"Hello?"
"PRAISE THE DEFILER, LINDA," a monstrous voice erupted from the receiver. "PRAISE HIM ... HE'S COMING FOR YOU."
She dropped the receiver and it smacked against the table before falling to the carpet.
This is not happening. It can't be...
Another, more familiar voice replaced the first at that moment.
"Linda?"
Linda stared at telephone, too afraid to touch it.
"Linda
Kirk?
"Linda! Are you all right?"
Slowly, she recovered the telephone and brought it up to her ear. "Hello?"
"Linda," said the voice, "it's Kirk. I wanted to see if you were okay."
She rubbed her eyes, as she answered, "No, Kirk, I'm not. I'm sorry, but I don't want to talk right now. Especially not to you, after all that's happened."
"But—"
"D*** it, Kirk, you were right, okay? Can't you just leave me alone for a while? Why would you let the phone ring fifteen times, anyway?"
"What? The phone only rang once before you picked it up, Linda. What's wrong?"
Linda plopped into her father's recliner and felt her mind drift away.
"I'm sorry, Kirk," she said finally. "Please, I need some rest. When I feel up to it I'll give you a call. I'm not ready to talk to <em>anyone</em> right now."
Kirk said he understood and let her go. As he hung up, Linda realized then that he really <em>did</em> love her. It hurt too much to think about it.
-Linda.-
Immediately after the voice resounded in her head, the room began to fade away. It made her stomach lurch, but she was beginning to get used to this experience. In the distance, she saw a rainbow colored light moving toward her at tremendous speed.
"Linda," said the light as it drew closer. It was the angel, but her image didn't come through as clearly as the Shaman's had. She appeared as light in the shape of a woman. But even through her camouflage, Linda could sense the angel's proud, stately demeanor.
"You're the angel," she said to her otherworldly visitor.
The woman laughed, and it was a musical and oddly comforting sound.
"You could say that," she said. "But it might be best if you call me <em>Psyche</em>."
"Psyche. That's the name of a Greek goddess."
"That's right. You're very perceptive." After a slight hesitation, Psyche lowered her voice and continued, "My Teacher said you need my help."
"Your Teacher?"
The rainbow light appeared to nod then. "Yes. The Shaman. He sent me to you."
"It's about time," said Linda, crying.
"Oh, child, don't cry. Haven't you cried enough today? Please, you must learn to be strong."
"Strong for what? What am I supposed to do?"
Psyche seemed to take on a grim posture. "More than you care to know, at this point, but I'm here to help. Do you understand?"
Linda stopped crying and replied, "I guess so. But how?"
"I have to teach you something about shielding from negative energies. You've been letting them in far too much for your health. And I'm going to show you how to cast a few basic protections."
Cast? Linda wondered. What did she mean by that?
"Oh, come on, Linda," said Psyche. "You know I'm talking about magic. You recognized Shaman's magical nature when he came to you. I know this is all new for you, but you must come to terms with it as soon as possible. The Defiler—"
Linda heaved at the sound of that word, and knew right away what it meant. "God, don't, please ... this can't be real..."
Annoyance radiated from the rainbow figure, and she spoke harshly again. "Linda, it is real. It's time to accept that and move on, because there are much worse things to come."
Linda wasn't sure she could but thought she had little choice in the matter. She tried very hard to control herself then, and Psyche began the lesson.
"First, you must understand the difference between psychic power and magic. Psychic power is rare, and only occurs in a few individuals. They are born with it, so it's completely natural to them. Training is necessary for them to harness and control their power, but spell working is not required. This you already know, because you've seen how you move objects just by thinking about it.
"Magic, on the other hand, is everywhere. People need to learn the skills to harness it, which takes time, and many don't have the aptitude for it. Like many skills, people develop an affinity for it when they're young..."
"But I thought you had to have a talent for it," said Linda. "You said that people are born with psychic ability ... it isn't the same for magic?"
An audible sigh erupted from the rainbow. "No, Linda, at least not usually, but that doesn't mean that anyone can do it. It's like learning a foreign language. When is the best time for that? Do you know?"
Linda nodded. "When you're very young, and you're brain is still developing. But you said you're going to teach me some magic ... if you're right, I'm too old to start learning now."
"Not really. You'd be surprised what magic you've already learned in your life, but that doesn't matter. You're different, Linda ... special. I don't have time to explain it now, okay?"
Just what does she mean then? Linda wondered. She shivered involuntarily. Could she really go through with this?
"If you don't," said Psyche, "then you'll die, and our adversary will win."
Linda trembled again. "You're not making this any easier, Psyche."
"I'm sorry, but it's true. We're running out of time, so please let me continue."
"Oh ... okay. I-I'm sorry."
Psyche's light rippled with a kaleidoscopic effect, and she sighed again. "All right. Please try not to interrupt again.
"Magic has the potential to be very powerful. A strong enough Witch can conjure beings from the Otherworld to aid them. Psychics can't, but remember: they don't need to cast spells. Any magic user will always need to say at least two words to trigger a spell, and they also need to believe in it. Magic is a spiritual thing; without belief it doesn't work. Psychic power will always work, regardless. Do you see the differences, the advantages and disadvantages to both?"
Linda nodded but chose to remain quiet. She wanted to focus on something, but it was very difficult to stare at a shaft of light. Her eyes were beginning to sting from the effort.
Obviously Psyche knew what Linda felt and the brightness dimmed a bit. "Is that better?"
"Y-yes. Thank you."
"I'm just going to teach you psychic shielding and a few minor protection spells. I wish I had time to teach you more but, even if I did, I don't know very much myself. I'm still an apprentice, so this is the best I can do.
"Close your eyes and think about your body. Try to see the aura that surrounds you."
When she did this, Linda immediately saw light surrounding her. "It's white," she said, "and ... and I see some green and brown in there too."
"White?" said Psyche. "Oh, right. You still have a strong connection to the Moon. The Earth and Moon are very closely related—"
"Um, Psyche? What are you talking about?"
"Oh, sorry. Now imagine another layer surrounding the first, and try to add more substance to it. Make it brighter, stronger."
Linda tried, but she could tell right away that something wasn't right. "It's not working."
Psyche said she wasn't trying hard enough. She urged Linda to concentrate on the colors, to see the shifting hues become more stable.
Linda continued to have trouble with it for a while, perhaps because of her emotional state. At first Psyche was a bit annoyed, stressing how little time they had. Finally, Linda was able to do it and her teacher moved on to the next step.
"You shouldn't have any problems with this," said Psyche. "Spell casting is similar to prayer. But remember what I said before; belief is very important in magic.
"You can protect yourself and your surroundings with a few simple spells. The best way for you do it is to cast certain spells every day when you wake up and reabsorb their energy to be triggered later when you need them. You can do this in almost the same way you build psychic shields: Concentrate on the spell and imagine siphoning its energy into your body. Then, later, you can trigger it by reciting a 'key.' A 'key' is a phrase that's repeated at the beginning and the end of the spell so it becomes a part of the working.
"Now you don't want to attract the wrong kind of attention, so the spell I'll teach you will use Christian symbols. If anyone catches you doing it they'll just think you're praying."
Linda wanted to laugh. Ri-ight. A Christian "spell." Give me break.
"It isn't funny, Linda. I told you magic is spiritual and spells are very similar to prayer. Anytime you call on your God you're working magic. It doesn't matter which religion you follow. You think Holy Communion isn't a magic ritual?
"Don't answer. I need to hurry. Start by standing, facing the west, and crossing yourself. Turn to the north and do it again, then again for east and south. This will create a circle of protection for your working. If you don't do this, you might attract something you can't handle—something that will hurt you. Understand?"
Linda gulped and nodded.
"Good. Once you've created the circle, you can cast your spell. Memorize these words:</div>
Lord protect me.
Lord protect me.
Lord protect me.
Lord God Almighty in Heaven,
Protect me, your devoted child and servant,
Let no evil touch me,
Let no evil bind me,
Let no evil tempt me.
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
Lord protect me.
Lord protect me.
Lord protect me.
Amen.
"You got it?"
Linda whispered the words several times to be sure, then said yes.
"All right," Psyche continued. "Afterward, you need to banish the circle. You'll do the same thing you did in the beginning, only this time you'll start from the south and work your way around to the west.
"If you've been paying attention, you should be able to tell me which words in the spell make the key. So tell me."
"'Lord protect me?'"
The rainbow flashed brightly in the dark room, and Psyche said, "That's it! Very good, Linda. Just one more thing: using magic or psychic energy can be just as exhausting as physical exertion, and sometimes more so. If you deplete your reserve, you'll need to rest to replenish it. Can you remember all of this?"
"I'll—I'll try."
"I guess that'll do. I don't need to remind you what's at stake here."
Linda shook her head slowly and suppressed a sob building in her chest.
Now that it was over, she had the impression she might not have learned anything today if someone else had tried to instruct her.
Feeling drained, Linda said, "Thank you, Psyche."
"You're welcome. Practice, okay? It really does help."
"I will. Don't go yet, please. I want to ask you something."
Although nothing like a smile was visible in the woman-shaped light, Linda felt one emanating from it anyway.
"Go ahead," Psyche encouraged.
Linda took a deep breath and asked, "Why did Shaman come in so much clearer than you? Is it because he's more powerful?"
"Not exactly, though he is more knowledgeable. There's more to it than that, but I can't get into it now. I must return ... I ... I have a battle of my own to fight."
"Against the Defiler?"
"Yes, but please don't say it so lightly. He is very strong ... I'm sorry, Linda. I have to go. Good-bye! Please, be careful..."
Psyche's light began to back away as she spoke, and soon it was merely a pinpoint in the darkness.
Somehow, the darkness didn't seem so empty anymore. It was full of goodness and warmth. It was only after Linda returned to herself that the fear engulfed her again...
_________________
Tower of Light Bookstore
Lulu Storefront |
|
